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Think back to a time, say 1990, when Blockbuster Video stores were America’s go-to spot for a movie night at home.

At the turn of the century the company was worth $4.8 billion. It employed 60,000 people in 9,000 stores throughout the country.

A quarter-century later, most Blockbuster stores are gone, casualties to innovation and competition.

But on Heather Drive in Opelousas, one Blockbuster Video still holds on — even though its corporate namesake closed the stores it owned in January of this year.

Bill Mobley, the president and owner of that store, says it’s the last Blockbuster in Louisiana.

“We’re a franchise, so as long as we’re making money, we’re still open for business,” Mobley said.

The Blockbuster name still carries weight for his store, he said, despite the shutdown of its corporate-owned locations. “There’s a huge advantage to the Blockbuster name,” he said. “It still has huge name recognition, but it has dwindled some.”

Technology has made it hard for video stores to compete for audiences. The Internet delivers streaming movies and TV shows into people’s homes now, either legally through Netflix and similar services or by illegal downloads, Mobley said.

Also, Redbox kiosks at grocery stores, McDonald’s and Walgreens allow people to rent a movie the same way they would buy a can of soda from a vending machine. Add to that pay-per-view and cable.

Cellphones and social media also play a role in the demise as VHS video joins its cousins, Betamax tapes and videodiscs, in the home movie scrapheap.

But in Opelousas, customers still stop by Blockbuster to rent movies and video games. The store carries a lot of big-name movies, and also stocks foreign-language and independent films and a lot of rare B-movies you likely never saw in theaters or on cable television.

Operating in a small town helps the store stay open, especially because a number of people in Opelousas don’t have high-speed Internet in their homes.

“It’s probably a little bit hard for stores in major cities to stay open, but better for smaller markets,” Mobley said.

One published report counts 34 Blockbuster Video stores in the United States, but almost all of them are about to fade away.

Mobley suggested that his store may be on borrowed time; he hinted that it may also fade to black this year.

“I don’t know, it depends on the volume of customers,” he said. “If I continue to see deterioration, then I’m going to have to close.”